Chapter 10: The First Fissure
798 Words
Silence settled over the Moon Temple.
The ancient stones no longer trembled.
The silver light beneath the cracked moonstone faded until only faint lines remained, as though nothing had happened.
Nothing...
Except everyone in the sanctuary knew it had.
No one spoke.
No one dared.
The High Priestess stood motionless, her eyes fixed on the fractured floor where Selene had stood only moments before.
Her grip on her staff never loosened.
At last, she whispered,
"The Moon has awakened something."
No one asked what.
Some questions were too frightening to hear answered.
One by one, the villagers began leaving the temple.
Not in conversation.
In silence.
Parents held their children closer.
Warriors rested uneasy hands on the hilts of their swords.
Even Elder Rowan looked years older than he had an hour ago.
Fear had changed the night.
It had changed them.
Selene lingered near the temple entrance.
Her thoughts refused to settle.
The voice still echoed inside her.
"You've come back."
She had never been here.
She knew she hadn't.
So why had those words felt...
Familiar?
The thought chilled her more than the voice itself.
"You look like you're trying to solve the moon."
Lucian's quiet voice pulled her back.
She almost smiled.
"I don't think even the Moon Goddess understands tonight."
"She probably understands it better than we do."
She glanced at him.
"You still believe this is part of her plan?"
"I believe she doesn't act without reason."
His certainty was comforting.
It was also terrifying.
Because if the Moon Goddess had chosen this path...
Then none of it was an accident.
They stepped out beneath the open sky.
The village square remained crowded, but no one approached them.
The silver thread shimmered faintly between them.
Some villagers stared at it.
Others couldn't bear to.
Selene noticed both.
She no longer knew which hurt more.
Lucian slowed.
Just slightly.
So slightly that only someone walking beside him would notice.
Selene noticed.
"You've stopped matching my pace."
He looked at her.
"I have?"
"You always take the same stride."
"Now you're shorter."
He gave a faint smile.
"I must be getting old."
She didn't laugh.
Something was wrong.
"You don't joke."
"I've been known to."
"Not when you're in pain."
The smile disappeared.
"I'm fine."
She stared at him.
He believed those words.
Or wanted to.
Another step.
Another.
Then...
A single crimson drop struck the white temple stone.
Selene's eyes followed it.
For a heartbeat...
Neither of them moved.
Lucian frowned.
He touched beneath his nose.
His fingertips came away stained red.
Blood.
He looked genuinely confused.
"I wasn't injured."
His voice was calm.
Too calm.
As though saying the words might make them true.
Another drop fell.
Then another.
The blood traced a thin line down to his lips.
The High Priestess had been watching.
The moment she saw the blood...
The color drained from her face.
"No..."
She breathed the word.
Not in surprise.
In recognition.
Lucian turned toward her.
"What is this?"
She didn't answer.
She couldn't.
Her eyes shifted to the glowing silver thread.
Then to Selene.
At last...
She whispered,
"It has already begun."
Selene felt the world tilt.
"No..."
Her voice barely existed.
"No..."
She stared at the blood on the temple steps.
Images crashed through her mind.
Every whispered accusation.
Every fearful glance.
Every lonely night she had spent wondering if everyone had been right about her.
She looked at Lucian.
He was still standing.
Still calm.
Still looking at her instead of himself.
That hurt more than the blood.
"I'm doing this."
The words escaped before she realized she had spoken them.
Lucian took one step toward her.
"This isn't your fault."
She shook her head.
"It always is."
Another drop of blood struck the stone.
She flinched.
Not from the sight.
From what it meant.
She turned and ran.
"Selene!"
Lucian's voice echoed across the square.
She never looked back.
The villagers parted instinctively as she disappeared into the darkness beyond the temple.
The silver thread stretched after her.
It grew thinner.
Longer.
But it did not break.
Lucian started after her.
The High Priestess caught his arm.
"Wait."
He stopped.
Barely.
"If you chase her now..."
She looked toward the forest where Selene had vanished.
"...the curse will only awaken faster."
Lucian met her gaze.
For the first time since they had met...
His composure faltered.
"What curse?"
The High Priestess lowered her eyes.
She answered so quietly that only he could hear.
"The one that awakens when love believes itself to be real."
Lucian looked down.
Another drop fell from his nose.
It landed beside the others.
This one shimmered.
Not red.
Silver.
The High Priestess closed her eyes.
A tear slipped silently down her cheek.
"The first fissure..."
she whispered,
"...has appeared."
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